Wapakoneta blanks Dunbar
WAPAKONETA — When the Wapakoneta offense needed an assist, the Redskins’ defense provided a lift.
While No. 6-seeded Wapakoneta posted a 30-0 shutout of No. 11-seeded Dayton Dunbar in a Division III Region 12 first-round game Friday at Harmon Stadium, the Redskins took a touchdown lead but began to sputter on offense for most of the half.
Running back Jace Mullen crossed the goal line from eight yards out on Wapakoneta’s first possession, but the Redskins’ offense went three-and-out on their next three drives.
That’s when the WHS defense got involved.
The Wolverines trailed 7-0 and marched to the Wapakoneta 1-yard line early in the second quarter, but Dunbar was held out of the end zone on four consecutive plays.
After a 17-yard pass from Nate Roberts to Jayvian Graves set up the Wolverines with a first down at the Redskins’ 1, Roberts tried to run into the end zone twice but was tackled by Kaden Siefring for no gain on two straight plays. An incomplete pass on third down led to Roberts scrambling for a loss of 15 yards and fumbling the ball away to Tyler Houser on fourth down with 8:26 left in the half.
“I thought we had great effort from our team tonight,” Wapakoneta
coach Travis Moyer said. “We played with a lot of energy and passion right from the get-go. I thought it was really critical for us to get the ball (first) and go down and score. The goal-line stand by our defense was really important, too.”
Roberts, who left the game with an undisclosed injury late in the half, was replaced under center by Graves, who was tackled for a safety after two consecutive snaps flew over his head deep in Dunbar territory. Houser and Mikey Lee provided pressure, while Lee was credited with the two-point play that handed Wapakoneta a 9-0 lead with 3:36 to go before halftime.
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